


After the Storm

by BranHowe



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Fae & Fairies, Fae Magic, Gen, Trickster Gods
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 13:11:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22850224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BranHowe/pseuds/BranHowe
Summary: Part Eleven of the multi-author collaboration of the history of Gabriel previous to his insertion to the Supernatural story. Gabriel has just ended his relationship with Kali and doesn't know what will come next.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3
Collections: In the Beginning-Gabriel's Past





	After the Storm

**Author's Note:**

  * For [GabrielLives](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GabrielLives/gifts).

> Thanks to my betas: [Sumira79](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sumira79/) and [GabrielLives](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GabrielLives/) X3

“I don’t care about them!”

A rogue wave crashed against the iceberg.

“They don’t care about me!”

A piece of the iceberg went down.

“I could even destroy all of this and no one would care!”

Gabriel screamed and sent out a wave of grace and power in frustration and broke the massive piece of ice apart. His breath was irregular and rough and he was still upset but that at least helped him diffuse a little. His shoulders slumped and somehow, at one point, his jagged breath turned into sobs.

He descended over another floating piece of ice and knelt upon the surface. The night was clear and the milky way filled the entire sky. The lack of strong winds made this a perfect night to look at the stars but all Gabriel could do was cry.

He cried and cried and cried, wondering where he had gone wrong and how he could not have seen it. He cried for hours, probably days, until his vessel felt just as bad and spent as a normal, tired, desperate human being could feel. 

He fell to his side and stayed lying in fetal position over the treacherously hard exposed layer of ice. He sighed and allowed himself to stop focusing on anything at all, letting the consciousness of all surrounding living beings clutter his own with all sorts of random thoughts proper of nature.

Hours passed and then some days, and then some months and then some years. A layer of crystalized water lifted from the ocean by the wind had already covered his figure but he still didn’t move. He didn’t have to in the end. Even when he could feel the cold seep through his pores, even when he could feel the stabbing air surrounding his makeshift tomb, he was not going to die. Nothing could kill him. He was an Archangel. 

No.

He was a God. And his people might need him.

Gabriel sighed. A blessing of narwhals passed by hundreds of meters below him, below the thick layer of ice. Finally, Gabriel moved his body, cracking his blanket of ice and laid on his back to properly look at the firmament above. A fleeting wonder for his brothers went through his mind but he quickly waved it away and sat. He looked around, wondering what he could do now.

He didn't even consider going back to Heaven. He knew there was nothing there for him. And he knew there was nothing in Asgard either. He had to find a new place to go; a new place to call home and he wondered, Had I been Loki, the real Loki, where would I have gone?

“Might as well ask.” Gabriel decided and flapped his wings once.

He appeared hidden several metres behind him. He always did it that way since they never knew who could be watching and he immediately felt disoriented. He knew for a fact that he was standing on a hill where several sacrifices had been done in his name and yet, now, a church stood at the top. It wasn't called a church yet, but Gabriel clearly felt the pull of adoration towards the heavens; people praying inside. He paced slowly towards it until he was by Loki's side.

"What in the Nine Realms?"

Loki sighed. "Some are calling it the true religion. I'm calling it bullshit."

He turned his back and began to stride away.

"W… what are you doing then? Why are you walking away?"

“Because there’s no point in trying.”

“What do you mean there’s no point in trying? We could subject them! Fill them with fear!”

“And that is exactly the problem, my boy.” Loki turned to face Gabriel. “Their hearts have already been filled with fear, and this one is much more profound.”

“So what are you going to do now?”

“Go back to the woods, stay for my most loyal people. Away from this madness.”

“So you’re pretty much running away? Going in hiding among those who adore you? If you’re going to be there then what am I supposed to do!?”

Loki sighed, frustrated. “I don’t know Gabriel, figure it out! It’s been a long time since you stopped being a child! Besides, weren’t you the one who first ran away from home? You should already know what to do on your own.” 

Gabriel saw Loki walk away from the hill, eventually disappearing into the woods. He had not been able to think of anything to say back with the sudden lash he had received but it didn’t help his mood at all. A person pulled his sleeve to call his attention. A beggar.

“Sir, a coin, please.”

Gabriel saw the man, saw his life, saw his deeds and that his greed had been what had initially plunged him into economic misery. He was already paying for his sins and regretful. Gabriel granted him a couple of copper pieces worthy of three meals. The man beamed and teared a little.

“Thank you kind Sir! You’ll earn a place on the Heavens.”

The man’s face turned into fear when he saw Gabriel’s features turn dark and fierce.

“Do not speak to me about Heaven.”

Fuming, he flapped his wings and went away. Loki smiled proudly behind the first rows of trees and sighed, relieved that Gabriel would keep his promise and stay away from the affairs of his kind.

Tibet. The place had nothing to do with what Gabriel was used to, and that was exactly the reason he had decided to stay there. Barren rocks were struck by cold wind day and night. Vibrant and colorful streaks of fabric of the nomads coming and going. He didn’t remember when he arrived but he did clearly know that it had been some time since the politics about the place have changed. 

Like many other days, he was looking at the distance, sitting at the edge of the railing surrounding the building. The Dalai Lama came and joined his silent contemplation for a while. He finally spoke.

“I believe it is time that our honoured guest leaves the place.”

“Are you sacking me now, old hag?” 

Calling him “old hag” was a bit too much from Gabriel considering this Lama was around his twenties, but Gabriel knew best. He had seen the soul of his predecessor leave his body and run to dive into a recently conceived body thrice already. And he was definitely not up to seeing how on earth this particular soul was able to do that while the rest properly went up or down. Maybe the man had found out some sort of cheat code on his first life.

The Lama smirked, “I am not sacking you as much as you are sacking yourself.” He reclined himself against the railing to properly face Gabriel, who was looking at him confused. “I have seen you sitting here, in this very place, life after life. And you are looking for something but have not found it yet. It is not illumination, since you do not look into our teachings. This means that it is time for you to go away, back to the world.”

Gabriel’s eyes widened. The sharpness of this man’s mind always impressed him, even when it annoyed him a bit that he had been able to see so easily into him; particularly because he had not realized that he was, indeed, looking for something and he was pretty much stalling.

“Well then, where should I go?”

“I guess that answer depends on what you want to achieve.”

Gabriel sighed. He knew that the man was right. He was only there because he was running away from all his problems and all his indecisiveness and really, all he wanted to do was just live without a single preoccupation, but for some reason every time he had involved himself with other people things never turned out right.

Maybe the problem was in himself. Maybe that was the reason that he still felt like he was not at peace. Maybe the Lama was right and he should go out and see if he could find a way to be happy, because even when he was not having any problems here, he didn’t feel happy at all.

He clicked his tongue, “What the heck, maybe you’re right, old hag. See ya later. Well, probably not the you from right now.”

The Lama gave him a wide smile and saw him disappear. 

Gabriel had never placed a foot in Ireland before but he liked it. The evergreens reminded him of his past home at the fjords but it definitely was not the same geography, which was a nice change. Like always, the reason he had chosen the place was because of all the things he didn’t want rather than the ones he did. 

He didn’t want problems, he didn’t want to face any of his past peers, either Heavenly or Asgardian and he didn’t want to be alone. The closest place he could think about was Ireland. He had never seen nor met the Fae Folk and this time seemed just as good as any to finally get acquainted with the Queen. Fixing his clothes to be a little bit more presentable, he walked towards a fairy ring and purposefully crossed the threshold into the realm of the Fae. 

The Fae folk lived free and careless. They ruled themselves by their own hand and respected each other as equals. Their nature was such that they recognized each other as kindred spirits no matter how visibly different their shapes would be. With that in mind, landing there as a pagan god was as much a stealth mission as trying to serve oneself a bowl of cereal in the middle of the night at five years old while your parents are sleeping in their bed. That was to mean, impossible.

The moment he was on the other side, he felt hundreds of curious eyes peeking at him. A jackalope approached him and stood upright with importance.

“Greetings” Gabriel approached the jackalope. “I am here today requesting for a meeting with your Queen in order to introduce myself. My name is—”

“Loki” Said the jackalope with a singing voice, “We know of you. Of all the gods.” The jackalope jumped a couple of steps away and turned towards Gabriel. “Well, come around now!”

Gabriel walked slightly behind the jackalope towards a hill that was no different than the other except for the fact that it was covered with white flowers. The jackalope stopped and turned around.

“She will come see you when the time is right.”

The jackalope ran towards a burrow and hid inside, leaving Gabriel alone. He looked around, waiting for something, anything, and when nothing seemed to come Gabriel sighed and sat on a flat rock that looked perfect just for that. A couple of minutes later, he heard a rustling behind. He turned around and met a Leprechaun, small enough that he couldn’t even reach his knee. The Fae stopped in his tracks.

“Oh darn the luck, I thought I had you.”

Gabriel snickered. “Hello my fellow...”

“O’Leary, you can call me O’Leary.” The tiny man shaped figure stretched his hand towards Gabriel who took it and gave it a shake.

“Loki.”

“You know better than most to give away your name like that.”

“I know better than most that some rules only apply to humans and those of their nature.”

O’Leary grinned a wicked smile, teeth showing up in a serrated pattern that Gabriel would not normally put to this type of creature. He sat by Gabriel’s side.

“So, what does a God of Tricks and Mischief do in our realm?”

“I’m waiting for your Queen.”

“Did she say she’d come?”

“She will come in time.”

“It’s not usual for her to show up right away. You might have to wait a looooong time.”

“I am no human, I don’t have urgent business to attend.”

O’Leary hummed in approval. “I like you. I thought you’d be more of a conceited asshole.”

“What can I say, maybe it’s because I’m adopted.”

O’Leary cackled with that laughter that shakes the entire body, he then slapped Gabriel’s thigh.

“Say, don’t you wanna come with me and prank someone?”

O’Leary jumped and began to dash away, turning after a couple of metres to see if Gabriel was still behind him. Gabriel looked at him for a second and pondered if it was okay to leave. He thought of all the time he spent by Kali’s side, first trying to woo her, then trying to keep her and then all the time he spent in self retreat. It had been long since he’d last played a trick on someone, anyone. He stood up, eyes shining bright just like his smile and paced behind the little folk with a mischievous snicker.


End file.
